I attended this race starting on Wednesday, when I walked right into the F1 garage (without credentials – see if that would happen today!) and was able to see all the cars being upacked after their transit from Rio. 1981 World Champion Alan Jones came out of retirement for this race and I was able to see his first sitting in the Arrows, where he would not fit – the head mechanic used a sledgehammer to pound in the tub(!) and in a couple minutes, he fit like a glove. The race was historic for the fact that John Watson came from 22nd on the grid to win, and I came away with memories that are still vivd 30+ years later…
I also attended a test that included the Arrows and Renault teams at Willow Springs, where I was one of maybe a dozen photographers on hand. Check out that gallery for some interesting shots of what was considered “state of the art” in 1983.

On the Thursday prior to the 1983 Long Beach Grand Prix, the Arrows (Alan Jones) and Renault (Alain Prost, Eddie Cheever) teams went to Willow Springs to test. I rented a car and drove to the track, where I got my first taste of modern Formula One cars in action. The transporters were another matter altogether – if you look closely, you can see the Renaults being loaded and unloaded into U-Haul trucks! What a difference a couple decades makes. This day also marked the “world debut” of the RE-30 Turbo, which Alain Prost raced for the first time at Long Beach. I got some of the first photos of the car outside of the Renault factory…

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